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Post by Aunt Alison on Jan 12, 2023 18:54:56 GMT
There's some interesting videos online of people spamming strong spells out of one or two slots
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Post by Samildanach on Jan 14, 2023 10:52:18 GMT
Right, after losing repeatedly to Champion Gundyr and giving up for now, Lothric Castle got fully explored before I started losing repeatedly to Dragonslayer Armour. Leaving that for now, a hunch proved successful (or maybe I read the secret somewhere years ago) and I arrived at Archdragon's peak to swiftly die repeatedly to Ancient Wyvern, or rather his very hard hitting snake men minions, especially that bastard with the thing on the chain.
In fact, the whole game definitely has taken a definitely step up in difficulty with Lothric Castle enemies also doing tons of damage when they hit. So three bosses proving to be a roadblock I decide it is time to attempt the Painted World of Ariandel. The enemies don't hit quite so hard on average, but fuck me there is a ton of them...and that massive wolf is causing me much strife.
Battled...and legged it to meet with the slightly suspect Freide and her very suspect Knight with the unfeasibly deep voice. Travelling downwards into the creepy zombie bird-men village and got a fair bit further due to the relatively easy enemies (other than the super fast ones).
My progress came to an end for the night on the sharp blade of unfeasibly deep voiced knight. I KNEW he was no good...or maybe I'm the bad guy? Hell. We all Bad Guy.
Both Lothric Castle and the Painted World so far were excellent areas, but then obviously the former is back on the main path and the latter is premium dlc content.
By the way folks, who do you find easier? Dragonslayer Armour or Champion Gundyr? Obviously both require time to learn, and it makes sense for me to start with whichever is easiest.
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Post by retro74 on Jan 14, 2023 11:27:45 GMT
I only fought them a couple of times but I think they were about the same in terms of difficulty
A strike damage weapon might be useful for those two if you’ve got an upgraded one
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malek86
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Post by malek86 on Jan 14, 2023 11:35:08 GMT
The speedruns keep being pushed back to make space for bonus games (I'm guessing?). Now the DS2 run is at half past midnight. I'll decide today whether I can watch it. I did wake up fairly late after all, this being Saturday at all. By the way folks, who do you find easier? Dragonslayer Armour or Champion Gundyr? Obviously both require time to learn, and it makes sense for me to start with whichever is easiest. Dragonslayer Armor was pretty easy for me, as a fast roll guy with Vordt's Great Hammer. Champion Gundyr is an optional boss, so it makes sense that he would be harder, though I don't remember having too much trouble with him either. Regarding the Wyvern, it took me a long time to defeat it, but: You can also just run past him and then eventually you'll be able to plunge attack him from above, killing him in one blow. |
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LTK
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Post by LTK on Jan 14, 2023 14:15:17 GMT
By the way folks, who do you find easier? Dragonslayer Armour or Champion Gundyr? Obviously both require time to learn, and it makes sense for me to start with whichever is easiest. Oh god, Dragonslayer Armour is a thousand times easier than Champion Gundyr. Gundyr is manageable until he starts phase 2 and then his attack chains just get fucking insane. He can combo everything into everything, and every time you think he might be done he'll throw in a delayed roundhouse kick to the face. His charge attack is basically impossible to dodge if you're not already far away from him and he can combo into that too. After an embarassingly large number of hours in this game I still haven't got gud at that fight. DSA is a walk in the park by comparison. His windups are mostly straightforward and consistent, and the only things that are harder to dodge than usual are the moves he does when two-handing his axe. The fact he often blocks complicates things a little, but that's just a matter of not attacking into his shield. Compared to Gundyr, he's an open book. The butterflies are more an annoyance than anything and you just need to run away from whatever they're shooting at you occasionally, and then it's just a matter of exploiting DSA's considerable openings. Ah yes, chain snake, infamous for being the real final boss of the Ancient Wyvern gauntlet. |
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Post by Samildanach on Jan 14, 2023 16:08:10 GMT
By the way folks, who do you find easier? Dragonslayer Armour or Champion Gundyr? Obviously both require time to learn, and it makes sense for me to start with whichever is easiest. Oh god, Dragonslayer Armour is a thousand times easier than Champion Gundyr. Gundyr is manageable until he starts phase 2 and then his attack chains just get fucking insane. He can combo everything into everything, and every time you think he might be done he'll throw in a delayed roundhouse kick to the face. His charge attack is basically impossible to dodge if you're not already far away from him and he can combo into that too. After an embarassingly large number of hours in this game I still haven't got gud at that fight. DSA is a walk in the park by comparison. His windups are mostly straightforward and consistent, and the only things that are harder to dodge than usual are the moves he does when two-handing his axe. The fact he often blocks complicates things a little, but that's just a matter of not attacking into his shield. Compared to Gundyr, he's an open book. The butterflies are more an annoyance than anything and you just need to run away from whatever they're shooting at you occasionally, and then it's just a matter of exploiting DSA's considerable openings. Ah yes, chain snake, infamous for being the real final boss of the Ancient Wyvern gauntlet. That's great advice, thanks. Yeah, I had noticed Gundyr's phase 2 was absolutely wrecking me. DSA I have only attempted thrice, so probably bottled it too soon. I'll probably give him another go once I get to an inevitable brick wall to my skill level in the dlc stuff. |
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Post by Samildanach on Jan 15, 2023 0:07:31 GMT
Dragonslayer Armour down and although he kept me on my toes, he was indeed less endlessly aggressive in phase 2 compared to Champion Gundyr.
Grand Archives have also been thoroughly rinsed, and the FromSoftware quality has remained extremely high throughout. I finally reach the top of Lothric Castle to meet Lothric and Lorian. Phase 1 only killed me once, but phase 2 is killing me in mere seconds. I think my brain is needing a rest as it has been another long session. God this game is addicive! Had quick final pop at Vilhelm in the painting only to be done in several times again. Time for bed.
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Post by Danno on Jan 15, 2023 9:04:42 GMT
My favourite time on Ancient Wyvern was when I managed to jink past everything to the foot of ladder of safety, where I promptly threw out a "Welcome!" gesture, thanks to the dualsense feature, instead of starting to climb. Resulting in a chained axe to the back of the skull 2 seconds later.
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Post by Samildanach on Jan 18, 2023 23:59:19 GMT
Bit more progress.
Ashes of Ariandel is complete other than what I presume is the end boss. Really enjoyed the variation throughout it, with nothing proving too easy or overly difficult. Having said that, the giant flies in the Crypt REALLY creeped me out. I could cope with the spiders of DSII's Brightstone or Bloodborne's chalices all bloody day before I go back in there again and have them swarm me in the dark with that fucking awful loud fly noise (shudders).
The boss at the very bottom began rather lamely; why is the epic music playing for this crappy npc and his 3 doggos?! Soon his big ass friend arrives and the real boss battle begins. Having just also faced Sulyvahn's Beasts in the secret area in Irrithyl, I felt there was rather too much similarity in moveset, but hey the Greatwolf was by no means a bad boss, the setting amd music was fantastic, it was a pretty dynamic battle, and of course it was a nice change to have to boss jumping me on the way to the final confrontation.
Had another pop at Ancient Wyvern and his Krazy Krew and won, as well as another go at the incredible Lothric Bros...and lost.
So I am up against them, Gundyr, Ariandel's last boss and whatever the rest of Archdragon's peak holds. Things are getting mighty tough about now and my butt cheeks will likely be clenched hard enough to crack walnuts soon.
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LTK
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Post by LTK on Jan 19, 2023 0:54:07 GMT
The rest of Archdragon Peak is seriously challenging, but holds some amazing treasure. I definitely recommend exploring that!
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Post by skalpadda on Jan 19, 2023 1:37:08 GMT
Not to mention some amazing fan-theory-crushing Souls Lore™. The Twin Princes became pretty easy for me once I realised that the rhythm of the attacks are the same even if they teleport, so you can blind dodge and trust the sound cues for most of it.
Gundyr is very parryable, if you're into that sort of thing.
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Post by Samildanach on Jan 21, 2023 12:46:47 GMT
Thanks folks.
So Champion Gundyr has indeed met his end and despite my initial sense that Untended Graves was a bit of budget filler, getting to the creepy deserted Firelink Shrine and the lore behind it all was undeniably pretty decent.
The Archdragon's peak has also been fully explored. I though it was probably the best of the non-main areas. The Lord of the Storm boss battle was awesome but a bit easy as I got him first try.
I'm joking of course. I got ripped a new one with barely a dent in his likely first life bar. Going to park that one for a minute since this appears to be the super boss of the main game.
Lothric proved mercifully easier after all that punishment, especially as I stopped trying to block with a shield and started rolling in time with his attacks. Bar a few variations in timings, most of his attacks are well telegraphed and easily dodged once I had seen them enough times. Another fantastic boss of course.
With him down I had enough time for one go at what must be the final boss. Soul of Cinder is up there with the very best of bosses, especially with his clever shifts in fighting styles on phase 1 as he channels those who have linked the fire before. The moment the music changes and I saw his very distinctive attack patterns in phase 2 is a gaming moment of the ages. He can also throw lightning spears which was obviously missing from the original battle.
I didn't quite beat him, but he doesn't seem too insurmountable.
Had a quick go at Friede again. Yep still can't get past her first phase yet.
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LTK
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Post by LTK on Jan 21, 2023 15:40:12 GMT
Some minor hints for Friede and the Storm Drake if you're interested: Friede: Friede's first phase is kind of a puzzle boss in disguise. Once you figure out her gimmick, you can backstab her easily whenever she goes to wind up that one attack, and she just keeps doing it so you can quite easily kill her with nothing but backstabs. Storm Drake: The Storm Drake is one of those bosses that's miserable if you haven't been paying attention to what the game tries to teach you about dragon fights. It's pretty oblique, but killing the Ancient Wyvern in one hit by plunging down on its head is supposed to be a hint for "a dragon's weak spot is its head". So as long as you don't waste time trying to hack at its ankles, you should be fine in phase 1. |
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malek86
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Post by malek86 on Jan 21, 2023 16:31:04 GMT
Oh yeah, it's phase 2 where the trouble starts. Only boss in the game (DLC excluded as I don't have it) I haven't beat.
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Post by Samildanach on Jan 22, 2023 23:34:11 GMT
Yesssss! Both Soul of Cinder AND Nameless King down. What an adrenaline rush after each and truly some of gaming's top boss battles. Indeed, there has not been a weak entry in all of the DSIII base game bosses as they all have something interesting or worthy to bring to the table. UNLIKE CAPRA DEMON!!
Good advice on concentrating on the Lord of the Storm's head, he became a lot more manageable then. The Nameless King proved a tougher customer as you all know; he is, however,less relentless than Gundyr's second phase, so there are enough appropriate moments to get a hit or two in or chug an Estus.
So that's the main game down and what a banger it has all been. Hard as ever to say whether it's quality beats the othe FromSoftware games as, like this, they are all imperfect masterpieces. DSIII is probably the most well designed, but also undeniably fan-servicey. Not sure if it's greater linearity is a problem or a major asset, since the difficulty scaling throughout was pitched totally right.
So Friede and then the final dlc, which I hear is pretty epic...bring it on!
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Post by Danno on Jan 22, 2023 23:58:14 GMT
Enjoy the Ringed City.
Seriously. It's peak DS.
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wunty
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Post by wunty on Jan 23, 2023 13:09:15 GMT
Enjoy the Ringed City. Seriously. It's peak DS. Can't tell if you're serious. Although it's definitely peak DS in some respects. |
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wunty
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Post by wunty on Jan 23, 2023 13:09:59 GMT
Saying that, Midir is one of my finest achievements. Love that fight now.
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Post by Aunt Alison on Jan 23, 2023 13:34:34 GMT
Ringed City is very good. Amazing finale
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Post by Danno on Jan 23, 2023 15:06:21 GMT
Absolutely serious. It is magnificent, especially in its bullshittery.
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wunty
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Post by wunty on Jan 23, 2023 15:07:52 GMT
It's peak DS in it's bullshittery.
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wunty
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Post by wunty on Jan 23, 2023 15:12:25 GMT
It's a mess. I remember playing it when it released and my god... Working my way through the Dreg Heap with the angels, respawning fuckwads, infinite poise Haralds, super lothric knights and what has to be the most trolling scantily clad lady in the history of gaming, I could have launched it all into the sun. That was before the first boss as well. That's another story. It only gets better (worse) after that as well. It's basically umpteen hours of Miyizaki slapping you in the face whilst laughing. It has it's moments mind you and I have grown to love it over time but bloody hell. It's not a healthy relationship. |
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Post by Aunt Alison on Jan 23, 2023 16:10:18 GMT
Who's the lady?
Those angels are pretty cool/creepy
It also has a kind of cool secret that I'm not sure how anyone would discover on their own
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wunty
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Post by wunty on Jan 23, 2023 17:12:30 GMT
What secret?
The pyromancer. I hate her.
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Post by Aunt Alison on Jan 23, 2023 20:16:30 GMT
What secret? The pyromancer. I hate her. There's a wall that opens if you transform into a humanity thing and stand in front of it |
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wunty
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Post by wunty on Jan 23, 2023 20:18:48 GMT
What secret? The pyromancer. I hate her. There's a wall that opens if you transform into a humanity thing and stand in front of it You what? Where? I know about the ladder in the second area. Are you thinking of that? There's no humanity sprites to copy in the Drug Heap. |
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Post by Aunt Alison on Jan 23, 2023 20:22:26 GMT
From wiki To solve this puzzle, travel to the swamp area, and use a White Branch twice or the Chameleon spell while standing in the water. You will be transformed into a humanity, much like Dark Souls One. While still in humanity form, walk back to the wall with the inscription and it will open a path to a ladder and secret items. |
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LTK
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Post by LTK on Jan 23, 2023 20:31:46 GMT
Oh god I forgot that's how you complete Lapp's quest. Stupidest puzzle in the series by far.
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wunty
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Post by wunty on Jan 23, 2023 21:03:24 GMT
From wiki To solve this puzzle, travel to the swamp area, and use a White Branch twice or the Chameleon spell while standing in the water. You will be transformed into a humanity, much like Dark Souls One. While still in humanity form, walk back to the wall with the inscription and it will open a path to a ladder and secret items. Yeah that one. Is that what you meant? Sorry I thought we were still talking about the dreg heap for some reason. Yes. Incredibly obscure though. |
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Post by JuniorFE on Jan 24, 2023 9:20:08 GMT
Counterpoint to the Ringed City bullshittery: The Ringed City has (boss name spoiler, for those that haven't played it) Slave Knight Gael. All other arguments invalid, hand them over for his lady's painting  |
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